Daisy Chains
by Rachel Ewok
Summary: A collection of tales involving Peregrin Took and his eventual wife Diamond of Long Cleeve exploring their relationship over the years. Lot's of fluff with some more serious issues. Just like life. Canon.
1. Chapter 1: The Four Travellers

**[[A/N. It is such a treat to know that a few people liked my previous Diamond and Pippin oneshots. :) This is going to be a longer story, with quite a few chapters. Each chapter will be a different month of various years. This isn't quite a story, more like a collection of sketches into the lives of Pippin and Diamond, but they all thread together. I hope you enjoy. :) ~Rachel ]]**

Blotmath, 1419; by Shire Reckoning

"Come on now Diamond." Estella Bolger tossed her curly, raven hair over her shoulder and snatched the mug from Diamond's hands; garnering a small squeak of protest from the younger hobbit lass.

"You've been sitting here all night." Estella grinned down at her, and Diamond gulped at that all too familiar sparkle in Estella's eyes.

"That is not true," Diamond replied hotly, "Not _all _night. In fact I walked right over there" she gestured with her now free hands to the table filled with food and drink, "And spoke with your brother, Stella." She nodded curtly, and Stella raised an eyebrow.

'The Troubles' hadn't been over a month, but the celebration seemed to last forever. The Shire was celebrating the end to the oppression of Sharkey and his men, as well as the return of the Four Travelers. Diamond had seen them, though had not recognized the Peregrin Took and Meriadoc Brandybuck of her youth, and Stella had needed to point them out to her.

They seemed unattainable now, it seemed foolish to Diamond that either of them most certainly Pippin would even remember her.

"Peregrin Took," Stella emphasized the name as if she was saying something completely and utterly scandalous "has been staring at you all night." Estella whispered excitedly pulling Diamond from her thoughts. Stella dropped into the seat next to Diamond with a sigh when she realized Diamond was going no where fast.

"Is he? I didn't notice." Diamond answered quietly; as she stared at him dancing awkwardly with another hobbit lass by the name of Belladonna Proudfoot- she was much too short for him, Diamond thought. For a fleeting moment she saw him glance over his shoulder to see if she was watching, and she quickly ducked her head and averted her eyes.

"Go talk to him Diamond, you _know_ him… Not to mention he's the heir to the Thain-ship." Estella grinned and poked Diamond in the ribs; smiling at the squeak of annoyance that she again drew from Diamond's lips.

_No._ Diamond thought. No, she didn't _know_ him: not anymore, anyhow. Peregrin looked absolutely strange in his foreign garb from distant lands.

"I could care less about him being the next Thain." Diamond frowned and absent mindedly twirled her fingers through the brown ringlet that was hanging over her shoulder.

Estella sighed exasperatedly, "Diamond, please, every lass wants him, but it's _you_ he's looking at." Diamond drew her lips in a straight line; Estella could be positively maddening at times.

"Let him look then." Diamond replied crossly.

"Diamond you're absolutely infuriating." Stella harrumphed and flounced off to again find Meriadoc Brandybuck with whom Stella had been dancing and flirting with the whole night. Diamond watched the two quietly at a distance. The smile on his lips, the cheeky blush in Stella's cheeks- she was so effortless around him, why did she grow up while Diamond stayed the same? Diamond wondered for a moment if she would ever grow up.

She didn't know why she was so aggravated with Pippin; or Stella for that matter. If there was any lad she fancied, it was Pippin. It was Pippin all those years ago lying out next to her in the field under the shade of the oak tree with Merry and Stella. It was Pippin and Merry that she and Stella chased after trying to play their "boy" games. It was Pippin who kept her hands warm one frigid Yule. And it was Pippin who kissed her once between the ears of corn in her father's field despite her giggling protests. But that was a long time ago, and despite the fact that he was watching her, Diamond was certain he didn't remember.

No. She didn't _want_ him to remember, she wasn't worthy of him, she never had been. Especially not now that he was dressed in fancy attire, dancing with any and every other lass here. He could have his pick, why would he ever pick her?

He wasn't even wearing _the scarf_ anymore: she felt a stab in her chest as she recalled the countless hours knitting the scarf for him as a Yule present. Diamond closed her eyes and felt sorry for herself. She didn't open them for a long time until she felt someone standing in front of her.

"Miss Diamond, may I ask you for a dance or will I have to carry you to the floor? I've been waiting for you all night." Diamond listened to the voice, the sweetest thing she had ever heard; the Tookish rumble in his voice was unmistakable. She opened her eyes and stared up at him: Pippin.

With a coy smile she gave him her hand. "I suppose carrying me out there would be most outlandish, I'll save you the embarrassment." His eyes lit up, those beautiful, green eyes that Diamond remembered so well, and his hand enveloped hers.

Diamond stood up and studied him carefully. "Peregrin Took, I do believe you are taller." He gave a small chuckle and shrugged his shoulders. "Not too tall to dance with you I should think." He winked and bobbed his head to the side. It was then Diamond realized that her Pippin was back.


	2. Chapter 2: The Master of Brandy Hall

Forelithe, 1420

An early summer wedding had the whole Shire talking. The union of Estella Bolger and Meriadoc Brandybuck, the heir to Brandy Hall. Diamond remembered the day vividly. The smell of the petals strewn about the aisle, the vibrance of the yellow roses and white daisies Stella carried in contrast to her dark hair.

Stella and Merry's romance had been a whirlwind. Diamond supposed they always had known they were to be married, and as such their courtship and engagement lasted only a short month before wedding preparations were made.

Back when they were just children Merry and Stella had been making eyes at each other while Pippin and Diamond argued and fought like children would. Diamond knew the only reason that she and Stella had chased Peregrin and Meriadoc around all those years was because Stella had fancied Merry. Diamond wanted to laugh when she realised all that time she had fancied Pippin herself.

Diamond remembered the look on Merry's face at the altar. She remembered Peregrin at her side. They were the Best Man and Matron of Honour for their dearest friends. The two had been seen in public together before, there was no doubt in that. The whole Shire knew of Pippin and Diamond's antics it seemed. But here, at the wedding of the Master of Brandy Hall nosy hobbits began to speculate about the future wife of the Thain's son.

There was a rumour, that back when Peregrin and Diamond were leaving their childhood age a bet had been started by some of the famers at the Green Dragon one night, so the tale went. They had witnessed a particularly nasty spat between Pippin and Diamond over some silly thing or another and one older hobbit, a Proudfoot said from his corner of the tavern:

"Well aren't they two lovebirds." This of course, raised laughter from all the hobbits in the place, but that was when the joke started. There was a whole pool of coins now, and now hobbits that had bet the two would never wed were starting to feel a bit nervous.

Though the whole "bet" was just a rumour. Probably.


	3. Chapter 3: Daisy Chain

Afterlithe, 1420

The heat of summer was upon them, and four hobbits lay underneath the shade of a large willow tree near the Smials. There was a pond nearby and a breeze grazed over the top of the pond, cooling the group slightly. The birds sang cheerily in the trees despite the sun's warmth and all nature seemed to be enjoying itself.

"Do you remember we used to lay out here when we were just little ones?" Estella asked dreamily, leaning against her new husband despite the heat. Merry smiled down at her and kissed her forehead which was damp with the sweat of a summer's day.

Diamond looked up from the daisy chain she was weaving and nodded to Stella and Pippin chortled "Like right now, then? Don't talk so old Stella dear, we're young yet. Diamond is a tween still if you remember." Diamond shook her head and smiled at Pippin, then looked back to her weaving. She and Pippin sat apart from each other, but she desired to be pressed against him as Stella was to her Meriadoc.

Though Diamond was obeying her father's wishes, despite the fact she wanted nothing more then to spend a few moments kissing Peregrin.

After he realised that Pippin and his daughter seemed to fancy the other, Diamond's father had been unwilling to leave the two alone without chaperones. Thus the respectable, _married_, pair of Brandybucks sat watching young Pippin and his Diamond of Long Cleeve.

"Kiss your sparkling lass Pip, we won't tell." Merry chuckled as Stella stretched her neck out, her lips begging for his, and he complied planting a long kiss upon her lips.

Pippin laughed quietly and said. "Some chaperones you are. Why if you two weren't married I would march right off and tell Stella's father what a wicked example to young, impressionable hobbits you are Merry."

That warranted another small chuckle from Merry, and Diamond turned to Pippin and with a small giggle, plopped the daisy chain right upon his mop of fair curls. "So kiss me then Pippin, or are you going to ignore your chaperone's advice?" Pippin looked into her eyes and gave a lopsided grin. Before he could speak though, Diamond quickly kissed his lips and settled back down on the ground. She rested her head in his lap and looked up at him.

"The flowers suit you Pip." She surveyed her handiwork atop his crown of golden curls and smiled.

"They don't suit me nearly as much as a diamond does." He winked, and Stella burst out laughing from a few feet away.

"Stars, Pippin you have been listening too much to Merry: he's rubbing off on you. Don't listen to him, he says the silliest things."

"He's romantic." Diamond protested hotly and Merry added incredulously, "Romantic, _my_ cousin? Diamond, dear, you have him confused for someone else. Though I will agree with the flowers, they suit him as well as any lass." Merry chuckled and Diamond made a face at him.

She glared at him for a few moments, but Pippin bent down to kiss her frown away, ignoring Merry's small jab about his looks. Diamond rolled her eyes, having not been seriously angry in the first place and stretched her hand out to pull his face down toward hers again.

This time when Pippin leaned over to kiss her, the daises fell off right on to Diamond's face and she began to giggle. Perhaps it was the heat, or perhaps it was simply the joy the four felt in the presence of the others but Diamond's laughter grew, until the laughter of four hobbits carried on the breeze, mixing in with the chirping of the summer birds.


End file.
